Surprise that the Thunder would risk dismantling its talented young core after rallying from a 2-0 deficit to shock the Spurs in last season’s Western Conference Finals.

Gratitude that the Spurs never had to do the same thing with their own elite troika of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

Indeed, Parker said he was counting his blessings long before Harden, who sought a maximum contract OKC decided it could not afford, joined the Rockets.

“I don’t need the trade to know that,” said Parker, whose 10-year partnership with Duncan and Ginobili, overseen by head coach Gregg Popovich, ranks among the longest — and most successful — in NBA history. “Every day I feel very blessed. I feel very lucky to be with the same team and the same coach. The run we’ve had with Timmy and Manu is just unbelievable. It’s almost impossible in professional sport. Any kind of sport. I feel very happy and lucky.”

That continuity has been especially apparent this season with the Spurs returning a franchise-record 13 players. With the “corporate knowledge” Popovich regularly refers to having been established before some of their current players were even in high school, shooting guard Danny Green said playing for the Spurs is primarily a matter of blending in.

“Those guys sticking around for so long, it keeps the chemistry even stronger,” he said. “Those three guys, once you see them clicking, it’s easier for us to learn…and adapt.”

That’s an experience the Thunder won’t have as they attempt to retool on the fly around Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Having battled Oklahoma City for a trip to the Finals less than six months ago, Green and Parker both said it will be strange not to see Harden in Thursday’s rematch at the AT&T Center.

“Things are different,” Green said. “Obviously they’re still going to be a good team. It’s kind of weird to look at OKC and thinking about them without their Big Three.”

Said Parker, “I’m a little bit surprised. Obviously they had a great thing going, but that’s the tough business of the NBA.”

NOTES

* Parker expressed no concern over the health of ailing Manu Ginobili (back spasms), who did not practice Sunday after missing Friday’s preseason game with Washington. “He’s just using his veteran moves,” Parker said. “He knew it was going to be a big practice, so he went, ‘Oh, my back hurts.”

Green said he was impressed with Davis, considered by many to be the NBA’s next great post player, but wasn’t quite ready to buy into any comparisons with Duncan.

“That’s tough,” he said. “I feel bad for him already if they’re comparing him to Timmy because Timmy’s a hard pair of shoes to fill. But he has potential. I think he’s more of a defensive guy right now. But in that system he has the room to grow and work on his offensive skill level.”